


"They must come up with kind words to say"

by LillyLacksTalent



Category: Beetlejuice - All Media Types, Beetlejuice - Perfect/Brown & King
Genre: Angst, Beej is chaotic, Beetlejuice is back y'all, Dialogue is hard okay, Found Family, I will be editing the chapters heavily, I wrote most of this stuff in the middle of the night, Please Don't Kill Me, Please give me critique ty, This has gone through to many rewrites, We gotta love that moodring hair, beetlejuice is bad at apologizing, but still depressed, definitely shenanigans, god he didn't think this through at all, hes like a younger brother and older brother at the same time, hes trying though, im sorry if im bad at writing im trying my best here, lydia and him are buds, lydia has nightmares about murdering him, tags are likely to update
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-18
Updated: 2020-04-18
Packaged: 2021-03-01 23:08:37
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,179
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23715694
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LillyLacksTalent/pseuds/LillyLacksTalent
Summary: It's been a year for the Deetzes, and six months to Beetlejuice, but he just can't take it anymore, those damn breathers just keep coming back up in his head, and he can't make them go away, so he yields.akaLydia didn't expect to see him on the roof, that evening.
Relationships: Beetlejuice & Lydia Deetz, platonic - Relationship, you gross nasties
Comments: 2
Kudos: 58





	"They must come up with kind words to say"

**Author's Note:**

> I'm really excited to finally be posting something, this is the first fanfic I've ever actually posted before!! I love exploring different ideas of how Beej ended up reuniting with the family, so this is one of the many variants I'm trying to explore! and yes, I do plan on writing separate versions for the others. :)
> 
> Please comment, your support/criticism is always appreciated!! and keeps me going!
> 
> This hasn't been Beta'd, feel free to point out typos or errors, it helps me! I definitely plan to come back and edit this, it's the first draft and is pretty awkward to read, I'll admit, but hey! That's what practice is for!
> 
> Also, I got the Miss Argentina’s name being Maria thing from the fic “take my where my soul can run.”!!
> 
> P.S. I'm so sorry if POV is super fucked, It's not my strong suit.
> 
> Edit: I'VE EDITED THIS HEAVILY, I changed up lots of dialogue, tried to make them a tad more in character, let's hope it's a bit more believable.

God. How long had it been? He had no clue, but it’d been a while, probably. Time worked differently in the netherworld than it did in the mortal realm, that’s a fact. Beetlejuice knew that too well. He wasn’t aware of the fact it’d only been six months to him since the whole debacle took place, while the Maitlands and Deetzes had gotten twice that time to get over it, or at least pretend too. 

Juno was back, only took about two weeks of netherworld time, he wished it hadn’t been so soon. He spent the whole two weeks in the waiting room, whilst Maria figured out his files and got him his powers back, and officially had his status changed from “newly-dead” to “born-dead”. So when he was finally _able_ to have fun again, there _she_ was, ruining everything, like she _always_ did.

He’d barely even thought of the Deetzes again since she got back, and when she did, they started popping up in his mind a helluva lot more. Maybe it was due to the fact she kept mammering on about that “damn breather kid!” and how she’d decided to give up on it because they were too much trouble. Trouble. That’s what he had liked about Lydia so much… she could create just as much chaos as he could.

Why did he miss them? He shouldn’t miss them… they ruined everything, after all.

But that time with Lydia had been the first time he was _really_ happy, in quite a while.

Tonight, he found himself laying on his back, staring up towards the blank and starless netherworld sky. He had an apartment in the city, sure, but he never liked being cooped up inside, he really only used his apartment for- er, _stuff_. Tonight was pretty uneventful, he hadn’t even felt like scaring the living hell outta the living since the whole thing went down. He just couldn’t get those damn _breathers_ out of his head, _again_. 

He really hadn’t expected what happened to be the outcome, sure, Lydia was tough, but she did _kill_ him, whether or not it was for the good of everyone involved. He found himself with a fist tugging lightly at his dress shirt, over the spot that had been stabbed through. He’d tossed his suit off and was using it as a pillow, not wanting to take the effort to just get one from his pocket-dimension-pockets. 

He’d been thinking, about going back, he wanted to, but the idea- no- the _fact_ he’d be rejected again hurt just thinking about it. Life (unlife?) was utterly boring, aside from Maria, at least. He and Maria had formed some odd kinship together, hanging out every Saturday night, but other than that, his life was boring as shit. But he didn’t have anything better to do that night, because Maria was busily running the desk, and for once he’d decided to leave her alone when she asked to not be distracted. 

He didn’t know how long he had been lying there, but It had finally got to him (that was a lie, it’d gotten to him ages ago, but he’d just finally broken), god/satan, he was just gonna do it. He sat up with a groan, tugging at his hair with his hands, and slinging his ratty suit jacket over his shoulder as he pushed himself up off the withered netherworld grass. He straightened out the collar of his shirt and made sure his suspender-straps were straightened out. He would check his hair, but he was in a hurry now, afraid that if he took to long, he’d change his mind and chicken out. 

He took a shaky breath in, was he afraid? No, he _couldn’t_ be. He tried to plaster on a grin, but it didn’t reach his eyes. He lifted his hand up and snapped his fingers, feeling the dry nothingness of the netherworld’s atmosphere drift away as air filled his undead lungs. He’d closed his eyes for the trip over and opened them again, the view he got was the gorgeous sunset falling over the small town….

…From the Deetzes roof.

***

Lydia had a pretty uneventful time at school that day, bringing home the average amount of homework her teachers usually gave her and finishing it early so she could just relax about it until the date it was due. She’d hung out with Adam and Barbara for a few hours, watching them work on her model. After that, she’d helped Delia prepare dinner for a while, before passing by her father’s office to see what he was doing, and finally retreating into her room. 

She’d checked her phone for any texts from her school friends, to see she’d only gotten bombarded by one of her group chats, and promptly ignored it for the time being. She took a quick glance out her window, seeing the sunlight coming through that hit the wall. The sunset was a wonderful mix of oranges and purply-pinks, the sun peeking through the clouds just a bit. She smiled wide and grabbed her camera out of her school bag, she’d brought it to school with her like she does every day, in case a good photo opportunity was to arise suddenly. 

She’d scrambled out her door and up the stairs, into the loft-like area that led to the attic. She gave the attics door a knock, as it was Adam and Barbara’s own private space at this point after everyone had decided their own parameters. She waited a minute before knocking again, still not getting a response, “They must be downstairs,” she finally concluded in her head. Pushing the door open (they didn’t feel a need to lock it), she scurried directly to the far wall and out the window onto the roof. 

She was only up there for five minutes, and she was already done, she’d only needed to snap a few quick pictures anyway. It was when she was turned around, beginning to head back inside, that things got interesting. She heard a shuffle and a raspy grunt, with a thud. She felt her shoulders tense, just a bit, her grip on her camera tightening. 

She slowly turned her head to the side, getting a glance at whatever or whoever was there, and her eyes went wide. There, just twenty feet away, was standing the demon that had turned their lives upside down just a year prior, he was staring out at the sunset, as far as she could tell. His wide figure obscured the sun completely, all she could see was his outline, and the vague pattern of stripes, and his green- no, _purple_ hair. 

_Should I say something?_ Is all she could think, until he turned around, taking a few steps back himself, obviously he hadn’t realized she was there. He muttered out a quick “Uhh” before diverting his eyes from her, appearing that he’d rather look at anything other than _her_ in that distinct moment. She watched as he scuffed his slightly heeled shoe into the hard concrete of the roof, sighing, he hadn’t thought this through, had he?

She realized she was still turning her head over her shoulder to see him, so she quickly turned around, examining his appearance further. He didn’t look too different, though he had his striped jacket over his shoulder, and his stubble looked like it could use a trim. But his hair… his hair was purple, all the way through, she’d only ever seen it like that was when she first met him, on… the roof.

She snapped herself out of her thoughts, finally finding the words, no matter how simple the question was. “Is- Is that you? Beetlejuice?” She was… surprised? That was one of the things she was feeling… but something else was there, excitement, maybe? She’d have to question it again later...

She kept her eyes focused on him intently, as he suddenly cleared his throat, finally looking back up to meet her gaze, as he started to speak, “Shit- uh, heya, Scarecrow. so- It’s been a while, huh kid?” he managed to rasp out. She squinted just a bit, but nodded slowly, she was still surprised he was _here_ again if she had to be honest. 

“Yeah, yeah-” he started again, anxiously scratching at his neck, and he took in a quick intake of air that he didn't need, “So, listen,” she was already listening, but she nodded again, and he continued, “I guess this is my sorta’ half-assed attempt at an apology, or whatever the fuck you wanna’ call it.” He’d shoved his hands into the pockets of his slacks, the grin he’d tried to be wearing before had faded away ages ago, now replaced with a tight and uncomfortable frown. 

She opened her mouth to reply but found herself closing it again. How was she supposed to reply to _that?_ She must have been taking a while to think of something because he had pulled his hands out of his pockets and had started fiddling with them. She found herself frowning in frustration, but tried to get out the best response she could muster in this odd encounter. “Alright- out with it then,” she said roughly. 

His eyes were wide, he really hadn’t expected that reply, had he. “That’s- That’s it? All you have to say is that? No- no “Oh I hate you BJ!” or “Get off my roof, BJ!”?” He seemed genuinely confused in the fact she, for one, wasn’t yelling, and two, didn’t seem all that- upset.

“Nope,” she confirmed, “Now out with it.” He just blinked a couple of times, before she figured she should say a tad more, “Yeah, we, didn’t exactly leave off on the best foot, but… I appreciate it, the thought that you wanted to try, I mean.” She tried to explain, as she hastily added on, “but, I don’t hate you, Beetlejuice, and I’m sorry if that comes as a surprise to you.” She was hoping that saying this might make it easier for him to 

He seemed to wince a bit at that, he certainly hadn’t been expecting- well, all of this. “Well…” he started up again, “I get that, kinda.” He shrugged, placing his hands back at his sides. “Anyway- I guess, I’m sorry for, y’know, all that fucked up shit with the uh, uh-” he stammered, trying to find the words, “the almost killing your whole family, exorcising Barbara, and- the marriage thing.” he found his voice quieting towards that last bit, he felt _weak_ , he was almost scared of her.

This time it was Lydia wincing, she didn’t like that part, she’d never admitted it, but she still shivered at the feeling, she could remember piercing his chest with Bad Art. She quickly shook the thoughts out of her head, before looking up to meet his gaze. “I think- I accept your apology.” She tried to smile sincerely but wasn’t sure it came off right. She didn’t have a whole lot of time to decide, but he at least _sounded_ sincere, or as sincere as he could be. This whole thing was so abrupt- so unexpected, and not to forget _awkward_. But she’d be lying if she said that she hadn’t missed him at least a bit, those three days they spent together really _had_ been fun. 

He seemed to be beaming in relief, but she held a hand up, “But…” she began, “I’m not the only person you have to apologize too. I think everyone else deserves an apology, as well.” His brief excitement dropped a bit at that, but he knew she was right. She knew she was the most lenient out of everyone to accept an apology like that, but she knew it’d be tougher for everyone else, so maybe a less out-of-the-blue way of going about it for everyone else would be in order. 

Before he could reply, she went on. “I think now might be the best time we’ll get.” She wasn’t quite sure what that implied herself, but she had a feeling if she let him go now, he may not be able to work up the nerve to come back and finish the job. Plus, now seemed to be a better time than any, everything was already calm, and they were going to eat dinner soon. 

He opened his mouth, already planning to protest, but found he _didn’t_ actually hate the idea, what he didn’t like was the fact that everyone would panic at the sight of him. Lydia didn’t let the fact that he started to shift uncomfortably just float by, crossing her arms. 

“You can apologize to everyone individually if that helps” She offered, knowing the pressure of everyone suddenly staring at him probably wouldn’t help his already less than eloquent vocabulary. 

He still looked uncomfortable, they’d barely talked it out themselves, why was she already inviting him inside? He felt- out of place… but she was giving him a look he couldn’t really say no too, it looked hopeful. He sighed.

“Okay- alright, Scarecrow.”

**Author's Note:**

> Just to note, I'm intentionally making Beej a bit toned down for this, at least this chapter, and during this arc, why? because I'm sort of imagining it as like- The whole thing just kinda cleaned him out? He's unhappy, it all just put a damper on his spirits (ha) and he's lost the motivation to be as flamboyant as his usual self. This will change! Hopefully,,
> 
> Most fics I write will include lots of headcanons and stuff, so feel free to ask questions if need be!! Don't be shy, I won't bite!
> 
> If you want to talk to me about Beetlejuice more, my Beetlejuice blog on Tumblr is @Gotta-Haunt-Till-It-Hurts!


End file.
